Shine Pictures

Saying that the powerful domestic economy easily offset the effects of the Asian financial crisis, university economists Thursday raised their already glowing economic assessment of Southern California in general and Orange County in particular. Citing a "constant stream of recent upbeat news," Cal State Fullerton economist Anil Puri said the U.S. expansion, entering its ninth year, had fired up demand in Orange County's high-tech manufacturing industries.

Saying that the powerful domestic economy easily offset the effects of the Asian financial crisis, university economists Thursday raised their already glowing economic assessment of Southern California in general and Orange County in particular. Citing a "constant stream of recent upbeat news," Cal State Fullerton economist Anil Puri said the U.S. expansion, entering its ninth year, had fired up demand in Orange County's high-tech manufacturing industries.

Elisabeth Murdoch's London-based production company Shine Group has formed a joint venture, Shine Pictures, with Arnon Milchan's New Regency to make broad-appeal movies for global release. The films, to be co-financed by Shine and Regency, will be distributed through 20th Century Fox, whose parent, News Corp., is controlled by Murdoch's father, Rupert Murdoch. The new outfit will have a multimillion-dollar development fund and will be run in London by Paul Webster and Stephen Garrett of Shine's Kudos Pictures, which will be folded into the new label.

Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. completed its $674-million purchase of Shine Group, the London television production company owned by the mogul's daughter Elisabeth Murdoch. The transaction accomplishes Murdoch's goal of bringing back his daughter to the corporate fold a week after her brother James Murdoch was elevated to deputy chief operating officer of News Corp. Rupert Murdoch has long refused to anoint an outright successor, but those plans appear to be accelerating after Murdoch turned 80 last month.